QUICK EDIT: The stars look very different today, Ziggy Stardust

The first line of the last song David Bowie ever released paints a poignant picture.

This genius of a man knew that his end was near, having being diagnosed with cancer 18 months ago - and he knew that he had to give his legions of fans a final gift.

The gift was Blackstar, his 25th album, which was released on his birthday, just a few days before his death.

A little fan offers a floral tribute in front of David Bowie's mural in Brixton, South London

And the very last song he ever released was Lazarus, the second single from the album.

Setting aside the very telling song title, even the first line of the song (‘Look up here, I’m in heaven’) points towards the fate that Bowie knew was awaiting him.

In a career spanning into decades, Bowie had always been ahead of his time.

By channeling the flamboyant Ziggy Stardust in music and the man who fell to Earth on film, he slipped quite easily into the shoes of an icon.

His music was reinvented almost every single time he produced a new record or song - his last album featured jazz elements.

As an alien in The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976) or scientist Nikola Tesla in The Prestige (2006), Bowie embraced the eccentric in films as well.

The outpouring of grief that followed his death shows how much he meant not just to his fans, but also to other musicians and society as a whole.

He built his image on his odd appearance (due to a permanently dilated pupil in one eye) and continued to produce, even till his last record, songs that were equally universal and difficult to decipher.

David Bowie, nevertheless, was not just a musician. His profession might have entailed him to sing, but for many of his fans he was a symbol of all that is different.